JPH05238004A - Method and apparatus for recording, and matter recorded thereby - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make position adjustment to recordings made by a plurality of recording heads execute simply, and to improve quality of image recording by a method wherein slippage in positions of the recording heads is detected in accordance with positions of recording information read by a recording information reading means, and the positions of a plurality of recording heads are adjusted in accordance with the detected slippage in the positions. CONSTITUTION:A pattern P1 is recorded on a line L1 with a head for cyan 100C of a first recording head 100, and the recorded pattern is read by a CCD sensor 20. Then the right end of the pattern P1 is taken in storage in a memory after the recording of the pattern P1 is finished, and the head is returned to its home position. Then, scanning by a carriage 9 is restarted and the pattern P2 is recorded on the line L1 with the head 100C in the same timing as that of the recording of the pattern P1, and the recorded pattern is read by the sensor 20. Then, a slippage T1 made between the lower end of the pattern P1 in the memory and the upper end of the pattern P2 is detected. Since the slippage T1 is equivalent to the amount of tilt of the recording part 100 toward the direction in which a recording material 22 is fed, the recording part 100 is turned in the direction for correcting the slippage T1. As the tilt of the recording part 100 can be corrected, tilts and heights of a second and a third recording parts 200 and 300 are corrected too.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a recording method and apparatus for recording an image while a plurality of recording heads relatively scans a recording medium, and a recorded matter thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an ink jet recording apparatus of a type in which ink is ejected from a recording head having a plurality of nozzles for recording, the recording head is reciprocally scanned over the recording sheet while intermittently conveying (step feeding) the recording sheet. The so-called serial type in which an image is formed by performing (main scanning) is the mainstream. In such a serial system, the width of the nozzle row (the print width of one scan of the print head) arranged in the direction (sub-scanning direction) orthogonal to the scan direction of the print head greatly affects the print time. Therefore, the recording time can be shortened as the recording is performed by a recording head having a large number of nozzles, that is, a recording head that is long in the so-called sub-scanning direction. There are many problems in terms of ink ejection performance. Further, in such a recording head, when the nozzle is clogged (non-ejection), it is necessary to replace the entire recording head, which causes a problem in cost.

Therefore, a plurality of relatively short recording heads having a small number of nozzles are arranged in a zigzag pattern in the nozzle arrangement direction, and recording is performed by the plurality of recording heads, whereby one long head is used. As if you did
A method of obtaining the effect of high-speed recording can be considered.

On the other hand, in an ink jet recording apparatus for recording by ejecting such an ink, in order to improve the resolution and gradation, the amount of ink ejected from a nozzle at one time is reduced to 1 It is also conceivable to adopt a multi-value recording method in which the number of dots to be imprinted in a pixel is changed from the conventional one dot to a plurality of dots. Also in this case, a configuration including a plurality of recording heads as described above is often adopted.

[0005]

However, in the recording apparatus having a plurality of recording heads as described above, there is a problem that the recording heads must be accurately aligned with each other.

Conventionally, an apparatus capable of recording images in full color by arranging recording heads for four colors at predetermined intervals in the main scanning direction and repeatedly ejecting ink ejected from each recording head. Has been put to practical use. In this case, the alignment of the recording heads with each other is determined only by the positional accuracy of the holders supporting the recording heads. However, when a plurality of such recording heads are arranged in a zigzag pattern and when it is used in a full-color recording device, two recording heads are required for each color, and at least eight recording heads are required. You will need it. Further, when performing the above-mentioned multi-valued recording, a minimum of 8 recording heads are used, and in many cases 12 recording heads are used. Turn into. Further, when the recording heads are arranged in a staggered manner, the shape of the holder becomes complicated, and it is difficult to improve the shape accuracy and the mounting accuracy of such a holder.

If the recording heads are not aligned accurately, the following problems occur. (1) When the print heads are arranged in the nozzle direction for the purpose of widening the print width for printing in one scan, not for full color printing, the relative positional deviation of each print head corresponding to a single color However, the curved line, distortion, and discontinuous line appear on the recorded image. (2) When a plurality of recording heads are arranged in the nozzle direction for full-color recording, positional deviation of the recording heads corresponding to each color appears as color deviation in each color line. (3) The positional deviation of the recording head in the multi-valued recording in which one pixel is formed by a plurality of dots as described above appears as a difference in color, which impairs color reproducibility and uniformity. (4) When the positional deviation occurs in the height direction of the recording head,
In the serial scan method, the recording dots overlap at the line-to-line joints, and black streaks with a constant pitch appear.

In any of the above cases, the quality of the recorded image is deteriorated.

The present invention has been made in view of the above conventional example, and provides a recording method and apparatus capable of easily adjusting recording positions by a plurality of recording heads and recording a high-quality image, and a recorded matter thereof. To aim.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, the recording apparatus of the present invention has the following constitution. That is,
In a recording device for performing image recording by scanning a plurality of recording heads relative to a recording medium, reading means for reading recording information recorded by the plurality of recording heads, and recording information read by the reading means And a position adjusting unit that adjusts the positions of the plurality of recording heads according to the position deviations detected by the detecting unit.

In order to achieve the above object, the recording method of the present invention comprises the following steps. That is, it is a recording method of performing image recording by relatively scanning a plurality of recording heads with respect to a recording medium, and recording a predetermined pattern at a predetermined position of the recording medium using each of the plurality of recording heads. ,
The method includes the steps of reading the predetermined pattern and detecting the positional deviation of each recording head, and adjusting the positions of the plurality of recording heads according to the detected positional deviation.

[0012]

In the above structure, each of the plurality of recording heads is used to record a predetermined pattern at a predetermined position on the recording medium, the predetermined pattern is read, and the positional deviation of each recording head is detected. The positions of the plurality of recording heads are adjusted according to the displacement.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a recording section of a serial type ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, the carriage 9 is a belt 16
The carriage is fixed in position and is scanned in the directions of arrows A and A ′ according to the rotation of the carriage motor 13. A head portion 12 and an ink cartridge are mounted on the carriage 9, and an ink jet head (recording head) corresponding to each color of cyan, magenta, yellow and black is shown in FIG. 2 on the head portion 12. Is provided in plural. Reference numerals 11C to 11Bk are ink cartridges corresponding to the respective colors, and ink is supplied from these ink cartridges 11 to a recording head corresponding to the respective colors via an ink tank (not shown).

A carriage motor 13 is provided for the carriage 9.
Is a motor for scanning and driving in the main scanning direction (directions of arrows A and A'in the drawing), and conveys and drives the carriage 9 via a drive pulley 14, a pulley 15, and a belt 16 fixed to the motor 13. There is. A recording material 22 such as a roll-shaped or cut-shaped paper is conveyed in the direction of arrow B in the figure by the conveyance roller 5 and the sub-scanning roller 6 which are rotationally driven by the recording material feeding motor 17 (FIG. 4). Reference numeral 23 is a recovery unit for performing a process (hereinafter, referred to as pressure recovery) for removing a factor that deteriorates the image quality of the recording head. 10
Is a platen for keeping the flat surface of the recording material 22 during recording. Reference numeral 20 denotes a reading unit (detection unit) such as a CCD sensor that reads a recorded image.

Image recording in this ink jet recording apparatus is performed as follows.

Recording material 22 fed from a paper feeding system (not shown)
Is temporarily stopped after the front end is fed by the conveying roller 5 by a predetermined amount. Then, the carriage 9 is driven by the motor 13 in the scanning direction (the direction of arrow A in the figure). At the same time, each recording head mounted on the carriage 9 performs recording with a recording width H corresponding to the entire width of the recording head corresponding to a single color arranged in the transport direction of the recording material 22 based on the image signal. .. After the recording of one line is completed in this manner, the carriage 9 is driven to return to a predetermined position on the left side in the drawing in the direction of the arrow A'and the recording material 22 is driven by the recording material feeding motor 17 (FIG. 4). The conveyance roller 5 and the sub-scanning roller 6 accurately convey the sheet in the B direction by an amount corresponding to the recording width H.

After performing the above-described recording process and the sequence of conveying the recording material 22 for a predetermined number of cycles, the recorded recording material 2 is recorded.
2 is discharged out of the machine.

Next, with reference to FIG. 2, the internal structure of the head portion 12, which is a main portion of this embodiment, will be described. FIG. 2 is a view of the head portion 12 in FIG. 1 viewed from the platen 10 side.

In FIG. 2, reference numerals 100, 200 and 300 denote first, second and third recording sections, respectively. 10
1, 201, and 301 are the respective cyan heads 10.
0C, 200C, 300C, each magenta head 100
M, 200M, 300M, each yellow head 100Y,
200Y, 300Y and each black head 100Bk,
Each of the head holders is provided with 200Bk and 300Bk, and the rotation center shafts 102, 202,
It has 302. Of these, the rotation center 102 is fixed to the head portion 12, but the rotation centers 202 and 302 are supported by the support frames 203 and 303, respectively. These support frames 203, 303 are guided by guide grooves (not shown), and are indicated by arrows C, C'in the figure.
It is configured to move freely in any direction.

Each of 215 and 315 is an actuator for moving each of the support frames 203 and 303 in the directions of arrows C and C ', and for example, a linear step actuator which is a drive source which linearly moves stepwise is used.
This linear step actuator converts the rotation of the output shaft of the stepping motor into a linear motion, and generally has a structure in which a trapezoidal screw is formed inside the motor rotor and on the output shaft. Such a linear step actuator is often used mainly for feeding a read / write head such as a floppy disk. 216,
Reference numeral 316 denotes the output shaft described above, the tip of which is rotatably connected to the support frames 203 and 303.

Therefore, when the actuators 215 and 315 are operated by the signal from the control unit 401 shown in FIG.
The output shafts 216, 316 move in the C, C'directions, and the support frames 203, 303 connected thereto also similarly move in the C, C'directions.
Move in the C'direction. As a result, the head holder 101,
201 and 301 also move in the C and C'directions. 105,2
05 and 305 are head holders 101 and 20, respectively.
It is a leaf spring that pushes 1, 301 upward in the drawing. 11
Each of 0, 210 and 310 is an actuator 21.
5 and 315 are similar actuators,
The tips of the output shafts 111, 211 and 311 are in contact with the corresponding head holders 101, 201 and 301, respectively. The head holders 101, 201, 301 are fixed by sandwiching the recording units 100, 200, 300 by the output shafts 111, 211, 311 and the corresponding leaf springs 105, 205, 305, respectively. And
The actuators 110, 210, 310 are the control unit 401.
Output shaft 111, 211, 3
By moving 11 in the C and C'directions, the head holders 101, 201, and 301 move in their respective rotation centers 10.
It rotates clockwise or counterclockwise around 2, 202 and 302 as axes.

The mutual positional relationship of the four recording heads mounted on the recording units 100, 200 and 300 is guaranteed by the accuracy of the head holders 101, 201 and 301.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic structure of the ink jet printer of this embodiment, and the portions common to the above description are indicated by the same numbers.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 401 denotes a control unit for controlling the entire printer apparatus, which stores, for example, a CPU 410 such as a microprocessor, a control program of the CPU 410 shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. RA that is used as a work area for the ROM 411 and the CPU 410 that are used to temporarily store various data
Equipped with M412 etc. Reference numeral 402 denotes a head driver for driving the print heads of the printing units 100, 200, and 300 according to print data output from the control unit 401, and each of 403 to 405, based on a signal from the control unit 401. Each actuator 110, 210, 31
A driver for driving 0, and 408 is also the control unit 4
Actuators 215, 31 based on the signal from 01.
5 is a driver for driving each of the five. 40
Reference numerals 6 and 407 denote motor drivers for driving the carriage motor 13 and the recording material feeding motor 17, respectively, based on signals from the control unit 401.

Next, referring to FIGS. 2, 3 and 4,
Each recording unit 100 according to the flowcharts of FIGS.
An example of a method for adjusting the positional relationship between 200 and 300 will be described. In this method, the position of each recording unit is corrected by detecting the recording result by one recording head in each recording unit. In the following description, the cyan head 1
The case where the position correction is performed using the recording results of 00C, 200C, and 300C will be described, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the case of recording by the cyan head. .

First, in step S1, the carriage motor 1
3 is started, and scanning of the carriage 9 is started. In step S2, as shown in FIG. 3, the cyan head 100C of the first recording unit 100 records the pattern P ₁ on the line L ₁ . In step S3, the recorded pattern P ₁ is read by the CCD sensor (detection unit) 20. Thus, steps S2 and S3 are repeatedly executed until the recording of the pattern P ₁ is completed in step S4, and when the recording of the pattern P ₁ is completed, the process proceeds to step S5, and the position of the right end portion of the recorded pattern P ₁ is stored, The carriage 9 is returned to the home position direction. Next, in step S6, the recording material feeding motor 17 is driven to convey the recording material 22 in the B direction by the distance H _{0 corresponding} to the recording width of the head 100C.

Next, in step S7, scanning of the carriage 9 is started again, and in steps S8 to S10, as shown in FIG. 3, the pattern is formed on the line L ₂ by the cyan head 100C at the same recording timing as the pattern P _1. Record P ₂ . Then, this pattern P ₂ is the CCD shown in FIG.
A deviation T ₁ between the lower end of the pattern P ₁ and the upper end of the pattern P ₂ read by the sensor 20 and detected and stored in step S5 is detected (step S11). This deviation T ₁ is detected in accordance with the number of driving steps of the carriage motor 13 which is carrying the CCD sensor 20, or CC
It is detected by the read pixel position of the D sensor 20. In this way, the deviation amount T ₁ is detected, and this deviation T ₁ corresponds to the inclination of the first recording unit 100 with respect to the conveyance direction of the recording material 22. Therefore, in step S12, the direction in which this deviation T ₁ is corrected (in this case, the clockwise direction in FIG. 2)
In order to rotate the first recording unit 100, the actuator 110 is operated to move the output shaft 111 in the C direction by a predetermined amount. As a result, the inclination of the first recording unit 100 is corrected, and then the inclination and height of the second and third recording units 200 and 300 are corrected.

Next, in step S13, the carriage 9
To the home position, and set the recording material 22 to (H + H ₀ ).
(= 4H ₀ ) Transport in the direction of arrow B. And step S
At 14, the scanning of the carriage 9 is started. Then, in steps S15 to S17, the third recording unit 3 is placed within the maximum recording width H.
The pattern P ₅ recorded on the line L4-A by 00 cyan head 300C, pattern P ₅ at step S18
The positions of the right ends (upper side and lower side) of are detected and stored. Similarly, in steps S19 to S21, the second recording unit 2
The pattern P ₄ is recorded on the line L4-B by the cyan head 200C of No. 00 at a predetermined interval from the pattern P _5, and the position of the right end (upper side and lower side) of the pattern P ₄ is detected by the sensor 20 in step S22. Detected and stored. Then, in steps S23 to S25, the first recording unit 100
Pattern C ₃ with the cyan head 100C of
The pattern P ₄ is recorded on the 4-C at a predetermined interval,
In step S26, the position of the right end of the pattern P ₃ is read. Alternatively, recording and reading of the patterns P _{3 to} P ₅ may be performed by one scan of the carriage 9.

Next, after step S27, the position of the second and third recording units 200 and 300 is corrected. First, in step S27, the distance S ₁ to the right end of the right and the pattern P ₄ of the pattern P _3, right and pattern P ₄ of the pattern P ₃
The difference from the distance S ₂ to the lower right end of the carriage is obtained from the relationship between the scanning speed V of the carriage 9 and the reading time t. Then, the deviation amount T ₂ (= | S ₁ −S ₂ |) is calculated and obtained. Further, in a similar manner, by comparing the pattern P ₃ and the pattern P _5, the distance S ₃ to the upper right corner of the right and the pattern P ₅ of the pattern P _3, by comparing the pattern P ₃ and the pattern P _5, the pattern P _The deviation amount T ₃ (= | S ₃ −S ₄ |) is calculated by obtaining the distance S ₄ from the right end of _{3 to} the right end of the pattern P ₅ . Next, in step S28, the deviation amount T
Actuator 21 in the direction that both ₂ and T ₃ become “0”
0, 310 to operate the second and third recording units 20.
The inclination of 0,300 is matched with that of the first recording unit 100.

Now, the recording units 200 and 300 (head 2
00C to the head 300Bk) are arranged so as to be orthogonal to the scanning direction of the carriage 9, similarly to the recording unit 100.

Next, in step S29, the carriage 9
Is returned to the home position, and the recording material 22 is indicated by H only as indicated by B.
Transport in the direction. Then, in step S30, the carriage 9
Scanning is started, and then the recording indicated by L5-A to C in FIG. 3 is performed in one scanning to correct the heights of the recording units 200 and 300. That is, in steps S31 to S33, the cyan head 3
00C is driven to record the pattern P ₅ ′, the CCD sensor 20 reads the upper end position of the pattern P ₅ ′, and the RAM 4
12 (step S34). Then step S3
In 5～S37, records' pattern P ₄ by the cyan head 200C at predetermined intervals and 'pattern P _5, reads the upper end of the pattern P _4', RAM its position
It is stored in 412 (step S38). Finally, in step S39～S41, records 'pattern P ₃ by the cyan head 100C at predetermined intervals and' pattern P _4, in step S42, each stored in RAM412 is detected by the CCD sensor 20 The distance H ₁ (the distance between the upper end of the pattern P ₃ 'and the upper end of the pattern P ₄ ') between the images and the distance H from the upper end of the pattern
₂ (distance between the upper end of the pattern P ₃ 'and the upper end of the pattern P ₅ ') is obtained. Alternatively, recording and reading of the patterns P _{3 to} P ₅ may be performed by one scan of the carriage 9.

Between these recording units 100, 200 and 300, it is not allowed that there are overlapping recording positions or nozzle gaps in the sub-scanning direction, so the distances between them are H ₀ and 2H ₀ , respectively. There must be. Therefore,
The difference Q ₁ between the distances H ₁ and H ₀ becomes the correction value of the vertical position of the second recording unit 200, and similarly, the difference Q ₂ between the distances H ₂ and 2H ₀ is the vertical position of the third recording unit 300. It becomes the correction value of the position in the direction.

In this way, the process proceeds to step S43, in which the actuators 210 and 215 are moved to Q _{2 in} the direction for correcting Q ₁ (in this case, the direction of C) and the actuators 310 and 315 are moved to Q ₂
Is operated in the direction to correct (the same, C'direction).

As a result of the above, the first, second, and third recording units 1
The mutual positions of 00, 200 and 300 have no inclination, and the positions are adjusted so that there is no gap between the patterns printed by the respective printing units. <Second Embodiment> FIG. 9 shows a head portion 1 of a second embodiment of the present invention.
It is the figure which looked at 2a from the platen 10 side.

It will be clear by comparing FIG. 9 with FIG.
And the recording units 100a, 200a, 300a, respectively.
The configuration for correcting the inclination of is similar to the configuration shown in FIG.
However, the position adjustment in the C and C'directions is the same as in the above-described embodiment.
The actuators 215 and 315.
Change the nozzle used among the recording nozzles of each head.
By doing. That is, the width of the nozzle row
Fixed recording width H₀ About 20 nozzles longer than H₀ As'
There is. Then, the predetermined recording width H₀ And nozzle width H ₀ 'When
The difference ΔH is, for example, in the case of a head compatible with 400 dpi,
The length is about 1.2 mm. And this ΔH
Minutes are the first and second recording parts, and the second and third recording parts, respectively.
Overlap with the department.

Next, the adjustment procedure in the second embodiment will be described. The recording section 1 is operated by the correction procedure shown in FIG.
After correcting the inclination of 00a, 200a, 300a, the correction values Q ₁ , Q ₂ for correcting the position in the height direction are detected. Each pattern shown in FIG. 3 is printed by using all the nozzles of the print head. After that, within the range of ΔH described above, the nozzles at the end portions of the heads in each recording unit are selected so that the recording by each recording unit overlaps and there is no gap between the data recorded by each head and the sub-scanning is performed. The recording position is corrected so that it is continuous in the direction. This process is shown in the flowchart of FIG. 10, and proceeds from step S42 of FIG. 8 to step S430 of FIG. 10, where the deviation amounts Q ₁ and Q ₂ obtained in the above steps are divided by the nozzle spacing of the head, Find the number of overlapping nozzles. Then, the process proceeds to step S431, in which the nozzles used in the recording process are determined so that the recording is not performed by the overlapping nozzles in the actual recording process, so that the recording positions of the recording units overlap. You can record without.

As described above, according to the second embodiment, there is an advantage that the number of actuators is smaller than that of the structure shown in FIG. <Third Embodiment> FIG. 11 is a view showing the arrangement of a head portion 12b according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

Reference numerals 500, 600, 700 and 800 respectively represent a cyan recording portion, a magenta recording portion, a yellow recording portion,
The black recording portion is shown, and three heads corresponding to each color are provided. That is, the cyan recording unit 500
The cyan heads C _{1 to} C ₃ are attached to the magenta recording unit 600.
The magenta heads M _{1 to} M ₃ are attached to the yellow recording unit 70.
0 has yellow heads Y _{1 to} Y ₃ and a black recording unit 8
00 are provided with black heads BK _{1 to} Bk ₃ , respectively. Each of these heads is held by each head holder 501, 601, 701, 801 as shown in the drawing, and each of these holders is supported by each shaft 502, 602, 702, 802 which is the center of rotation. .. Here, the rotation center shaft 102 is the head portion 12b.
Is fixed to the other rotation center shafts 602, 702.
Each of the 802 has a respective support frame 603, 703,
Each is supported by 803. Similar to the configuration of FIG. 2, these support frames are operated by actuators 615, 715, 815 in response to a signal from the control unit 401, so that arrows C, C ′ in the figure are output via the output shafts 616, 716, 816. It is configured to move in the direction of. Therefore, the head holders 601, 701, 8
Each of 01 is also movable in the C and C'directions.

505, 605, 705, 805 are leaf springs, and actuators 510, 610, 71 are respectively provided.
0,810 output shafts 511,611,711,811, and head holders 501,601,701,80
The recording units 500 to 800 are positioned by holding the recording medium 1. Incidentally, here, the actuator 510,
610, 710, 810 is activated to activate the recording unit 500, 6
The rotation of each of 00, 700, and 800 around their respective rotation center axes is similar to the case of the actuators 110 to 310 having the configuration shown in FIG. 2 described above. Further, the mutual positional relationship of the four heads mounted on each head holder is guaranteed according to the positional accuracy of the head holders 101 to 401.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12, an example of a method of adjusting the mutual positional relationship of the recording units will be described. Also in this case, the recording result by one of the recording units is detected and corrected.

First, as in FIG. 3, the cyan recording section 500
Head C₁ By line L₁ Pattern P on top₁₁Note
Recorded, and then the next line L₂ Cyan recording on top
Head C of 500₁ By pattern P₁₂To record.
These two patterns are read by the CCD sensor 20
Including the gap T₁ To detect. And this deviation amount T ₁ 
By activating the actuator 510 based on
Then, the inclination of the first recording unit 500 is corrected. At this time
The details of the processing of step S1 to step S1 of FIG.
It can be carried out in the same manner as S12.

After the above correction, the recording material 22 is conveyed by 2H ₀ in the sub-scanning direction, and the maximum recording width H is reached as shown in FIG.
The following recording is performed on the lines L4-A to L4-C. That is, the head C ₃ of the cyan recording unit 500 drives the line L4
The pattern P ₁₃ on the -C, the pattern P ₁₄ by the head M ₃ of magenta recording unit 600 on the line L4-C, the pattern P ₁₅ on the line L4-B by the head Y ₂ yellow recording unit 700, Black Head Bk of recording unit 800
_The pattern P ₁₆ is recorded on the line L4-A by 1 during one scan, and the recording result is read by the CCD sensor 20 subsequent to this recording. Then, the distances between the right end of the pattern P _{13 and} the upper right ends and lower right ends of the respective patterns P _{14 to} P ₁₆ are calculated, and magenta,
Yellow, black recording units 600, 700, 800
Then, the tilt correction amounts T _{2 to} T ₄ are detected. Then, the actuators 610, 710, 8 of a predetermined amount corresponding to these amounts are provided.
10 is operated and adjustment is performed so as to eliminate the inclination of the recording units 600, 700, 800 with respect to the conveying direction of the recording material 22. This processing can be performed in substantially the same manner as in step S14 of FIG. 6 to step S28 of FIG. 7, except that the number of recording units is different from that in the first embodiment.

Next, thus on C, and a state where the inclination is corrected, on the line L5-A~L5-C, recording the pattern P ₁₃ '~P _16' with a respective recording unit similarly to L4 do it,
The distance between the upper and lower ends of each pattern and the upper end of the pattern P ₁₃ 'is determined. In substantially the same manner as in the first embodiment described above, the RAM 4 detected by the CCD sensor 20 is detected.
From the upper end position of each pattern stored in 12 to the distance H ₁ between each image (the upper end of the pattern P ₁₃ 'and the pattern P ₁₃ '
₁₄ 'and the distance) between the upper end portion of the distance H ₂ (pattern P _13'
Obtaining 'and distance) between the upper end portion of the distance H ₃ (pattern P _13' upper and pattern P ₁₅ and the distance between the upper end of the upper end portion of the pattern P ₁₆ '). This is different from the above-described first embodiment only in the number of recording units, and can be realized by executing the processing shown in steps S30 to S42 of FIG. 6 in correspondence with the number of recording units.

These recording sections 500, 600, 700, 8
No. 00 print heads have overlapping print positions and sub-scanning.
Since it is not allowed that there is a nozzle gap in the direction,
The distance between them is H₀ , 2H₀ Must be
I have to. Therefore, these heads C₃ Distance between and₃ 
Difference in recording position with₁ (Q₁ ), And head C ₃ 
And head Y₂ Distance H₂ And H₀ Difference Q₂ Ask for. same
Like head C₃ And head Bk₁ Is the difference in the recording position between
Distance H₃ And 2H₀ Difference Q₃ Ask for. Thus each record
Correction amount Q in the height direction of the part₁ , Q₂ , Q₃ And calculate that
Actuators 615, 715 and 815 according to quantity
11 to drive each head holder in the directions of arrows C and C ′ in FIG.
601, 701, 801 are moved to move the recording unit 600,
Height correction of 700 and 800 is performed. <Fourth Embodiment> Next, referring to FIG. 13, a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
An example will be described. In FIG. 13, the head portion 12c is
Anne recording unit 500a, magenta recording unit 600a, yellow
-Having a recording unit 700a and a black recording unit 800a,
Similar to the recording head shown in FIG. 9, each recording unit 500a,
The recording width H is set for the heads of 600a, 700a and 800a.₀
Excess nozzles other than the number of nozzles required to record
is doing. And adjustment of the recording position in the height direction
This is done by changing the position of the nozzle used. So
For details of the above, refer to the description of the second embodiment described above with reference to FIG.
It is the same. Therefore, as in the case of the third embodiment described above,
Then, each recording unit 500a, 600a, 700a, 800
The angle of a with respect to the conveyance direction of the recording material 22 is set to the actuator.
Adjusted by 510, 610, 710, 810
Then, the pattern P shown in FIG.₁₃’, P ₁₄’, P₁₅’, P
₁₆After recording ', the shift amount Q in the C, C'direction of each recording portion
₁ , Q ₂ , Q₃ For each head
Determine the nozzle to use.

Through all the above-described embodiments, the recording position of the carriage 9 in the scanning direction (arrow A, A'direction) can be adjusted by electrical timing, and the adjustment can be performed by adjusting the inclination and height. Similarly, it can be automatically performed based on the data read by the CCD sensor 20.

The present invention is particularly effective in an ink jet recording head and a recording apparatus for recording by forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy among the ink jet recording systems.

Regarding the typical structure and principle thereof, see, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4740.
What is done using the basic principles disclosed in 796 is preferred. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and continuous type, but especially in the case of the on-demand type, liquid (ink)
By applying at least one drive signal to the electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the sheet or liquid path in which the liquid crystal is held, which corresponds to the recorded information and causes a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling. Since heat energy is generated in the electrothermal converter to cause film boiling on the heat acting surface of the recording head, air bubbles in the liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal in a one-to-one correspondence can be formed. It is valid. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection openings by the growth and contraction of the bubbles to form at least one droplet. When the drive signal is pulsed, growth and contraction of the bubbles are immediately and appropriately performed, so that it is possible to achieve ejection of the liquid (ink) with excellent responsiveness, which is more preferable.

As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. If the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 of the invention relating to the rate of temperature rise on the heat acting surface are adopted, excellent recording can be performed.

As the constitution of the recording head, in addition to the combination constitution of the discharge port, the liquid passage, and the electrothermal converter (the linear liquid passage or the right-angled liquid passage) as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications, A configuration using US Pat. No. 4,558,333 or US Pat. No. 4,459,600, which discloses a configuration in which the heat-acting surface is arranged in a bending region, may be used. In addition, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. Sho 5-5 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of the electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-123670 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 5 (1993) -58
A configuration based on Japanese Patent Publication No. 9-138461 may also be used.

Further, as a full line type recording head having a length corresponding to the maximum recording medium width that can be recorded by the recording apparatus, a combination of a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above-mentioned specification provides the length. Either of the structure satisfying the requirement or the structure as one recording head integrally formed may be used.

In addition, by being mounted on the apparatus main body, it can be electrically connected to the apparatus main body and can be supplied with ink from the apparatus main body by a replaceable chip type recording head or the recording head itself. Alternatively, a cartridge type recording head provided with an ink tank may be used.

Further, it is preferable to add recovery means for the recording head, preliminary auxiliary means, etc., which are provided as the constitution of the recording apparatus of the present invention, because the effect of the present invention can be further stabilized. .. Specific examples thereof include capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suctioning means for the recording head, preheating means using an electrothermal converter or a heating element other than this, or a combination thereof, and recording. It is also effective to perform stable recording by performing a preliminary discharge mode in which another discharge is performed.

Further, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to the recording mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but the recording head may be integrally formed or a plurality of combinations may be used. Alternatively, the device may be provided with at least one of full colors by color mixing.

In the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid, but it is an ink that solidifies at room temperature or lower and that softens at room temperature, or is a liquid, or the above-mentioned. In the inkjet method, it is common to control the temperature of the ink itself within a range of 30 ° C to 70 ° C to control the temperature of the ink so that the viscosity of the ink is within a stable ejection range. It is sufficient that the ink is liquid.

In addition, the temperature rise due to the thermal energy is positively prevented by using it as the energy for changing the state of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state, or the ink is solidified in a standing state for the purpose of preventing evaporation of the ink. In some cases, such as ink that is liquefied by applying heat energy according to a recording signal and ejected as a liquid ink, or one that has already started to solidify when it reaches a recording medium. The use of an ink having a property of being liquefied only by heat energy is also applicable to the present invention. In such a case, the ink is disclosed in JP-A-54-5684.
No. 7 or JP-A No. 60-71260, a mode in which it faces the electrothermal converter in a state of being held as a liquid or solid in the recess or through hole of the porous sheet. May be In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, as a form of the recording apparatus according to the present invention, the recording apparatus according to the present invention is integrally or separately provided as an image output terminal of the information processing equipment such as the word processor and the computer, and is combined with a reader or the like. It may be in the form of a copying machine or a facsimile machine having a transmission / reception function.

The recording medium may be not only woven cloth but also cloth including non-woven cloth in addition to paper and plastic.

The present invention may be applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices or an apparatus composed of one device. It goes without saying that the present invention can also be applied to the case where it is achieved by supplying a program for implementing the present invention to a system or an apparatus.

As described above, according to this embodiment, by providing the recording position adjusting mechanism with respect to the plurality of recording portions, the member for supporting the recording portions can be made simple and have a necessary minimum size. As a result, it is possible to obtain a high-quality image with a simple configuration, which is free from line distortions, color shifts, and joint lines that are peculiar to serial recording.

[0062]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to easily adjust the recording positions of a plurality of recording heads and record a high quality image.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a main part of a recording unit of an inkjet printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of a main part showing a configuration of a head part according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining position adjustment of the recording unit in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an inkjet printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Figure 5]

[Figure 6]

[Figure 7]

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a position adjusting process of the recording unit in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an essential part explanatory view showing a configuration of a head portion of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a process of determining a nozzle to be used in the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an essential part explanatory view showing the constitution of the head portion of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining the position adjustment of the recording portion for each color in the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an essential part explanatory view showing the constitution of the head part of the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

9 Carriage 12 Head 13 Carriage Motor 20 Detector (CCD Sensor) 22 Recording Material (Recording Paper) 100, 200, 300, 400 Recording 110, 210, 215, 310, 315, 510, 6
10, 615, 710, 715, 810, 815 Actuator 401 Control unit 411 CPU 500, 500a Cyan recording unit 600, 600a Magenta recording unit 700, 700a Yellow recording unit 800, 800a Black recording unit

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁵ Identification code Internal reference number FI Technical display location B41J 29/46 C 8804-2C H04N 1/23 101 Z 9186-5C

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A recording apparatus for performing image recording by relatively scanning a plurality of recording heads with respect to a recording medium, comprising: a reading unit that reads recording information recorded by the plurality of recording heads; and a reading unit. A detection unit that detects a positional deviation of each recording head according to the position of the read recording information; and a position adjustment unit that adjusts the positions of the plurality of recording heads according to the positional deviation detected by the detection unit. A recording device characterized by the above. 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the position adjusting unit adjusts an inclination of the recording head in a direction orthogonal to a scanning direction. 3. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the position adjusting unit adjusts a vertical position of the recording head with respect to a scanning direction. 4. A recording apparatus for performing image recording by scanning a plurality of recording heads relative to a recording medium, wherein each of the plurality of recording heads records at least the number of recording elements corresponding to a recording width. A reading unit that has an element and reads the recording information recorded by the plurality of recording heads; and a detection that detects the positional deviation of the recording information recorded by each recording head according to the position of the recording information read by the reading unit. And a recording element determining unit that determines a recording element to be used for recording among the respective recording elements of the plurality of recording heads according to the positional deviation detected by the detecting unit. Recording device. 5. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head is an inkjet recording head that ejects ink to perform recording. 6. The recording head is a recording head which ejects ink by utilizing thermal energy, and is provided with a thermal energy converter for generating thermal energy applied to the ink. Item 5. The recording device according to item 5. 7. A recording method for performing image recording by scanning a plurality of recording heads relative to a recording medium, wherein a predetermined pattern is recorded at a predetermined position on the recording medium using each of the plurality of recording heads. And a step of detecting the positional deviation of each recording head by reading the predetermined pattern, and a step of adjusting the positions of the plurality of recording heads according to the detected positional deviation. How to record. 8. A recording method for performing image recording by scanning a plurality of recording heads relative to a recording medium, the plurality of recording heads having recording elements corresponding to the recording width or more. A step of recording a predetermined pattern at a predetermined position on a recording medium using each of the above, a step of reading the predetermined pattern and detecting an overlap of the predetermined patterns recorded by the recording heads, and Determining the recording element to be used by each of the plurality of recording heads. 9. A printed matter in which an image is recorded by scanning a plurality of recording heads relative to a recording medium, and a predetermined pattern is formed at a predetermined position on the recording medium using each of the plurality of recording heads. A recorded matter, which is recorded by reading a predetermined pattern, detecting a positional deviation of each recording head, and adjusting the positions of the plurality of recording heads according to the detected positional deviation.